The EVO International Olive Oil Contest was presented during a press conference at the National Archaeological Museum of Paestum, and now producers can sign up to the third edition of the competition conceived and directed by the renowned taster Antonio G. Lauro.

EVO is not only an Italian acronym to designate extra virgin olive oil, but more importantly on this occasion it stands for evolution.- Antonio G. Lauro

EVO-IOOC, organized by Lauro and VINAR SA Argentina, with the collaboration of the association Oleum and Voglia di Viaggiare Eventi, will culminate in a series of events leading up to an award ceremony which will take place in Capaccio Paestum, in the province of Salerno, May 14-19 2018.

“EVO is not only an Italian acronym to designate the extra virgin olive oil, but more importantly on this occasion it stands for evolution,” said the president of the contest. “The event evolved, and we moved from Sicily to Campania, while enhancing the management and enriching the program,” pointed out Lauro who, after the success of the first two editions of the D-IOOC, brought his competition’s format to the olive-growing territory of Cilento.

The EVO-IOOC is finalizing its agenda which will include happenings both on-site and at an international level, organizers said. “We already planned activities such as ‘EVO Kids’ and ‘EVO Teen’ dedicated to children and teenagers, workshops for producers, and tourist activities that will be conducted in archeological sites,” Lauro pointed out, mentioning that in Paestum there are three of the most well-preserved ancient Greek temples. He anticipated that the closing ceremony will take place in a still-secret suggestive location.

Antonio G. Lauro

“We received the appreciation of Italian and international organizations which now become institutional and technical partners of the event,” said Lauro, specifying that organizing the competition in the town of Capaccio Paestum was possible thanks to the willingness of local institutions.

“The city council immediately agreed to be a partner of the project. Mayor, Franco Palumbo and deputy mayor, Teresa Palmieri, who are both olive-growers, expressed their enthusiasm in supporting this competition as a vehicle for promoting high-quality productions of the territory, boosting the supply chain and improving the education of young people,” Lauro affirmed.

Extra virgin olive oils from around the world will be assessed by an international panel. Twenty professional tasters will choose the best products of several categories including, organic, monovarietal, blend, an “International Award” and PDOs/PGIs, the first four being subdivided into Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere. Also, gold and silver medals will be awarded and a special prize will go to the best EVOO from Campania.

“The work of the panel will be summarized in a buyers guide, which will illustrate the sensory profiles of the winning extra virgin olive oils, and will be presented at international fairs and events, including ACCIGusto in Tokyo, where we will launch the Japanese version,” said the managing director, Stefania Reggio.

“We want to give visibility to producers with a contest founded on the professionalism of the staff and the experience of judges. The competition evolved also through the organization of interesting and useful seminars,” she explained, referring to a workshop on web marketing and a talk that will be given by the law firm Barzanò & Zanardo on the importance of intellectual property and what it means to register a trademark.

“We set up tasting sessions and already scheduled an event with our sponsor Alfa Pizza to talk about the main elements of the Mediterranean diet like flour, mozzarella, tomato and extra virgin olive oil,” Reggio revealed. “Other events will be confirmed in the coming days. Several activities will be dedicated to producers and even more to consumers.”